PhD students from outside of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs may pursue a Doctoral Certificate in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy. The certificate program allows PhD candidates to broaden their education to include SPIA courses and an advanced policy research project, typically related to their thesis, that draws on the policy-relevant social sciences.
PhD candidates interested in environmental policy topics may apply for the HMEI-STEP Fellowship, which provides additional structure and funding support to pursue a STEP certificate. However, PhD candidates who are not part of this fellowship program may also pursue the certificate. The PhD certificate requirements (listed below) are the same with or without a fellowship.
Requirements for Doctoral Certificate in Science, Technology and Environmental Policy (STEP)
Coursework:
PhD candidates pursuing the certificate are required to complete three (3) graduate-level courses in the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. Doctoral students must take at least one course in each of the following categories:
- One SPIA STEP-approved science and technology policy course (see below for approved course list)
- One SPIA graduate course that is NOT a STEP-approved course, to encourage students to develop general knowledge in public policy topics. Please search the Princeton Course Catalog for a full course listing.
- An elective (any SPIA graduate-level course)
All courses must be taken for academic credit prior to a student entering DCE status. Two half-semester courses equal one full course toward the requirement.
Faculty Advising:
All students applying for a certificate must identify a STEP faculty member (who cannot be the student’s primary thesis adviser) to serve as their adviser for the program. (Non-SPIA faculty who are affiliated with C-PREE or CITP may, with permission of the STEP Certificate Director, serve as an adviser.)
Advanced Policy Paper:
PhD candidates must also meet the advanced policy paper requirement. Students should work with their STEP faculty advisor to ensure the paper satisfies these requirements. This paper must represent original scholarly work, deemed of publishable quality (i.e. in a peer-reviewed or equivalent publication) and is often developed as a chapter of the student’s dissertation. Candidates must also fulfill the requirements of their home department.
Enrollment:
Students interested in obtaining the STEP certificate should complete the Certificate Declaration form online and reach out to the Certificate Director to discuss course selection and advising.
HMEI-STEP Fellowship
The HMEI-STEP Fellows are Princeton PhD candidates in departments outside of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, often (but not exclusively) from science and engineering departments. Fellows are usually selected in their second or third year.
Awarded students receive half support (tuition and stipend) from the High Meadows Environmental Institute (HMEI) for two years and participate in the Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy (STEP) program at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (SPI). HMEI-STEP Fellows also receive a $3,500 award to support their graduate research. Please visit the following link for more information and to access the application:
STEP Certificate Director

2021-2022 STEP Approved Courses
Fall 2021
- SPI 527c: Public Management in the Digital Technology Age, Steven Strauss
- SPI 581c: Energy Economics, Amy Craft
- SPI 591b: Policy Workshop: Mitigating the Effects of Vaccine Hesitancy, Varun Gauri
- SPI 591f: Policy Workshop: Global Supply Chains and Geopolitical Risks, Doyle Hodges
- SPI 591g: Policy Workshop: Climate Adaptation and the Coasts: Managed Transition, Guy Nordenson
- SPI 593g: Topics in Policy Analysis: Bridging the Digital Divide (Half-term, Session I), Tithi Chattopadhyay, Mihir E. Kshirsagar
- SPI 593m: Machine Learning for Policy Decisions (Half-term, Session II), F. Garip
- SPI 593n: GIS for Public Policy (Half-term, Session II), William Guthe
- SPI 594s: Climate Change Science, Policy, and Mitigation (Half-term, Session I), Denise Mauzerall
Spring 2022
- ENE 522/MAE 533: Introduction to the Electricity Sector-Engineering, Economics, and Regulation, Jesse Jenkins
- SPI 548: Weapons of Mass Destruction and International Security, Chris Chyba
- SPI 586e: Topics in STEP: Energy Policy, Meg Jacobs
- SPI 586f / COS 586: Topics in STEP: Technology Policy and Law, Jonathan Mayer
- 594f: Environmental Justice and Policy in the U.S. (Session II), Nicky Sheats
- 594k: Extremism, Social Platforms & Content Moderation (Session I), Andrew Guess
- 594r: Behavioral Science in Environmental Policy (Session I), Elke Weber
- 594u: Data Privacy in the US and Europe: A comparative Perspective (Session II), Helena Kastlova
- 594v: Vaccination: Epidemic Dynamics, Policy and Vaccine Hesitancy (Session II), Bryan Grenfell
2020-2021 STEP Approved Courses
Fall 2020
- SPI 527c: Public Management in the Digital Technology Age, Steven Strauss
- SPI 581c: Energy Economics, Amy Craft
- SPI 591f: Policy Workshop: Rapid Switch, India, Eric Larson, Chris Greig, & Joe Lane
- SPI 593n: GIS for Public Policy (Half-term, Session II), William Guthe & Tsering Shawa
- ARC 519: Climate Change, Adaptation and Urban Design, Guy Nordenson
Spring 2021
- ENE 522/MAE 533: Introduction to the Electricity Sector-Engineering, Economics, and Regulation, Jesse Jenkins
- SPI 548: Weapons of Mass Destruction and International Security, Christopher Chyba
- SPI 586d: Topics in STEP: Global Environmental Governance (PU/NYU), Michael Oppenheimer
- SPI 593t: Topics in Policy Analysis: Digital Disruption of Elections [Half-term, Session II], Jeffrey Fischer
- SPI 594k: Extremism, Social Platforms & Content Moderation [Half-term, Session I], Andrew Guess
- SPI 594r: Behavioral Science in Environmental Policy [Half-term, Session II], Elke Weber
- SPI 594s: Climate Change: Science and Policy [Half-term, Session I], Denise L. Mauzerall
- SPI 594u: Data Privacy in the US and Europe: A Comparative Perspective [Half-term], Helena Kastlova
- SPI 594v: Vaccination: Epidemic Dynamics, Policy and Vaccine Hesitancy [Half-term, Session II], Bryan Grenfell
- Rutgers University: Climate Change Risk Analysis (16:107:572 / 16:218:602 / 34:970:655), Robert Kopp & Enrique Curchitser. To enroll please see more information about the Princeton-Rutgers Graduate Exchange Program and contact the instructor for details.